


Guardian of Hope

by Open_Fire



Category: Guardians of Childhood & Related Fandoms, Guardians of Childhood - William Joyce, Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, Rise of the Guardians (2012)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-08
Updated: 2018-04-26
Packaged: 2018-05-19 05:15:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 15,586
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5954950
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Open_Fire/pseuds/Open_Fire
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When Hermione told Professor Mcgonagall about Harry's Firebolt, she thought that she did the right thing. But when faced with losing her two best friends, Hermione uses her time turner and meets with some unexpected individuals who teach her about friendship, forgiveness, and hope.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Hermione thought she had done the right thing when she told Professor McGonagall about Harry's Firebolt. It had no card or indication of who had sent it and mysterious gifts were often harmful ones in the wizarding world. She repeated this to herself while she held back tears in the Gryffindor Common Room.

"What did you go running to McGonagall for?" Ron shouted, his face was turning a shade similar to his hair. Hermione threw the book she had been pretending to read aside.

"Because I thought – and Professor McGonagall agrees with me – that that broom was probably sent to Harry by Sirius Black!"

Harry dropped his arms to his side, loosely holding his tin of High-Finish Polish which he had been hoping to use on the broom he no longer had.

"Come on Harry," Ron mumbled. He grabbed Harry by the shoulder and led him to their dorm.

Hermione remained sitting on the couch. Crookshanks crawled onto her lap and she hugged him fiercely, ignoring the meow of discomfort from him.

"I just wanted to help. I wish that I never said anything. Or that he'd never gotten that stupid broom," she whispered into Crookshanks's fur.

"That's it!" she said, sitting up suddenly and accidentally throwing her cat to the floor. "Sorry," she apologized briskly and she ran up to the girl's dormitory.

She hadn't been wearing it because she had no classes to attend but the time-turner still sat undisturbed in her bedside table. The sand within the little hourglass was still, and its multi-tiered rings were laid flat.

She grabbed it and before she let herself be persuaded otherwise, wrapped the chain around her neck and turned the dial.

Once. Twice. She turned it until she saw herself walk backwards into bed and pull the covers on herself, and then she turned it three more times for good measure.

"Alright," Hermione told herself quietly. She flinched as her past-self stirred in bed. Easing the door open slowly she snuck down the stairs.

The common room was empty of course but something felt wrong.

"Lumos," she whispered. It took her a few moments to realize why she was on edge - the fire that was always kept stoked was nothing more than coals. "That's strange," she muttered to herself.

"I'd say." Hermione tensed and looked around the common room for the person who had spoken.

She knew Harry and Ron were the only other Gryffindors who had stayed over the holidays – and she didn't know anyone with an Australian accent.

"Over here, sheila."

Hermione used her wand to search the darkness and held a hand over her mouth to keep from screaming.

Beside the dead fireplace where there had been nothing seconds ago, was a huge grey rabbit looking amused.

"You wizards deal with many strange things, but you lose your marbles over seeing a pooka," he shook his head. "How your lot learned to time-travel, I'll never know."

"You can talk?" Hermione gasped.

The bunny raised his eyebrow. "Apparently," then his eyes locked on the time-turner dangling around the girl's neck. With one bound he was right in front of Hermione holding the golden pendant in his large paw.

"Where did an ankle-bitter like you get one of these?" Hermione smacked his furry paw and he let go.

"The better question is how did you get in here?" she squeaked, realizing too late that it probably wasn't a good idea to hit a six foot tall animal.

The bunny looked at her as if trying to guess how she would react to whatever he said. "Through one of these." He tapped his foot and a hole appeared in the wooden floor. He stepped into it and vanished. Hermione was about to follow him when it closed leaving a daisy in its place.

"Now how about answering my question?" Hermione jumped backwards with a shriek.

"Stupefy!" The rabbit ducked, ears flattening against his head. The red jet of magic flew over him and into the wall leaving a scorch mark in the red wallpaper.

"What was that for?" He glared at the young witch.

"How did you get behind me?" Her wand was still pointed at him.

"The same way I left." He tapped his foot and hopped into the hole that appeared. This time Hermione saw the second hole appear and the rabbit that came out of it. Although she was admiring the obviously advanced magic, she didn't miss the smug look on the rabbit's face.

After a few moments the smile vanished.

"Okay, enough chit-chat. Where did you get the –"The rabbit stopped mid-sentence to turn and look at the fireplace. Hermione looked too and was shocked to see the dying embers coated with a thick layer of frost. "Just bloody perfect," she heard the rabbit growl before a gust of cold wind came out of the fireplace leaving the room several degrees cooler. The rabbit was glaring at a spot in front of the fire.

"What are you looking at?" Hermione asked. Another gust of wind blew her hair back and she felt really cold.

"Step back Frostbite or she's gonna catch a cold," the rabbit said. Hermione still couldn't see what was causing the temperature drop, but she did feel a bit warmer as if the cold air backed off. She looked down to see two footprints made of frost as if someone had been standing in front of her moments before.

"She's time travelling." Bunnymund said to himself. "Why would I be lying?" He paused and continued talking to himself. "How am I supposed to do that?" Another pause. "Fine, but don't expect any gift out of me this year. Why don't you tell North that you'll catch up to him later; we might be here a while."

To Hermione's shock, presents dropped from thin air onto the already large pile underneath the Christmas tree. Before she could ask about it a gust of air blew up the chimney. "He shouldn't be too long. In the meantime, sit down. Everything will make sense soon." The rabbit sat down in one of the armchairs and she did the same.

A gust of cold air marked the return of the invisible guest. She heard a thump and a third armchair rocked onto its back two legs before settling on the floor once more. The rabbit waited a few moments for the air to settle.

"Alright, sheila, do you know what I am?" he asked. Hermione didn't hesitate in her response.

"A rabbit." Bunny glared at the chair that now had frost forming on it. He turned back to the witch.

"Wrong." Hermione made a noise of indignation. She wasn't used to people telling her she was wrong, especially when something was as blatantly obvious as a rabbit right in front of her.

"I am a pooka. Have you heard of them before?" Hermione began to shake her head, but then she remembered a passage she had read during her first year at Hogwarts while trying to find more information about Nicholas Flamel.

"Wait. There was something mentioned in a book I read a while back. A wizard," she paused searching for the name. "Ombric, said he met one once. He even fought beside it on many occasions with a fairy and his apprentice. There wasn't much more than that in the book – I didn't believe a word of it because the tale was too far fetched.

Bunnymund's eyes seemed to soften at the mention of Ombric's name.

"It was real alright. Did it mention what I could do?"

"No, it was mostly about Ombr-wait. What you could do?" Hermione realized she was on the verge of yelling at the pooka. She brought her voice back down. "That passage was dated hundreds of years ago! It couldn't possibly be about you!"

There was silence in the common room as Bunnymund decided how to approach the situation.

"Do you know about the childhood icons?" he asked.

Hermione was taken aback by the sudden change of subject, but she answered him anyways. "You mean like Santa Claus and the Easter Bunn- oh my god!" She pointed her finger right at the pooka's nose causing it to twitch. You're- you're the EASTER BUNNY?"

"Keep it down, sheila." Hermione ignored him.

"But you're the Easter Bunny!"

"Yeah, but everyone calls me Bunnymund. The fairy in the story is Toothiana, but you'd recognize her as the Tooth Fairy. The apprentice that you read about is Santa and there's also the Sandman; he joined us a bit later on." He paused and a snowball hit his head causing him to glare at the chair again. "I haven't forgotten you but if you keep pissing me off, I might!

"Anyways, because I am a pooka, I can travel through time. As a bonus, I can also tell when people are meddling where they shouldn't meddle. That's why I showed up here; whatever you wanted to change in the past would have had some bad consequences."

Hermione couldn't see how keeping the broom from getting to Harry would change anything significantly. She told Bunnymund as much after telling him about the falling out she had between her and the boys. He thought about it and responded, "Well, even if it wasn't hexed, you'd be hiding what you had done from them. That would weigh heavily on your conscience, probably changing the way you'd act around them."

"They already hate me. Or they will in a few hours when I tell McGonagall about the broom," Hermione felt tears beginning to form. "They're my only friends – I can't lose them." Bunnymund was quiet for a bit.

"Frostbite is right. If they are really your friends, they will find a way to look past this one argument."

Hermione wiped away the tears from her face. "Who is Frostbite? You've mentioned him twice now."

"Do you believe everything I have told you so far? About me and the other Guardians?"

Hermione thought about it. Logic told this could all be some elaborate prank. Could Harry or Ron be under the invisibility cloak creating frost? No, they wouldn't have learned about elemental magic yet – that was sixth year work at least.

She resigned herself to the inevitable reality that the Easter Bunny was a time travelling pooka, and every other tale she grew up with in the muggle world was also real.

"Yes," she said with conviction.

"Then meet the fifth member of the Guardians, Jack Frost, spirit of winter." Bunnymund gestured to the chair that was still coated in frost. "He specializes in being an all-around pain."

A snowball appeared from thin air and flew towards the pooka who ducked to avoid the projectile. The snowball had to have come from somewhere. Hermione closed her eyes and focused like she did during a test. Bunny was having a one sided argument but she realised that it wasn't so one sided anymore.

"…think you're so special because you get a holiday! Well I've got news for you, cottontail! I give kids holidays whenever I want! I could make every day a snowday but I don't 'cause I'm a nice guy!"

Hermione opened her eyes and was shocked to see a teenager standing on the armchair pointing a staff at Bunnymund. He wore a blue hoodie coated in frost and his messy white hair stood out, especially in the dark common room.

"Mother Nature would probably kill you for that, kid, not to mention the other seasons." Bunnymund seemed rather calm despite his angry companion.

"Jack Frost?" She couldn't believe it. Surely he hadn't been there the whole time. The teen looked down at her, his scowl replaced by a wild grin as he bought his staff close to himself.

"That brings the total to twelve! I'll catch up with you yet, Bunny!"

"Twelve? I thought you were at nine – the Burgess kids, the Canadian girl and then that one in Russia," Bunnymund was smiling for his friend, knowing how good the feeling of getting a new believer was. Jack felt Hermione's belief a lot more that Bunny did. It was like a raindrop on an ant compared to an elephant though he would never make that analogy to Jack's face.

"The one from Russia got two of his friends to believe in me! It was a pleasant shock when I visited him last year," Jack was now floating on air – literally. He glided over to Hermione and offered his hand. "Jack Frost, Guardian of Fun. It's a pleasure to meet you."

Hermione took his hand and, unsurprisingly, it was as cold as ice. "I'm Hermione Granger."

"That's a nice name," Bunnymund commented. Jack Frost turned on him.

"You mean you've been bugging her for how long now and you didn't even know her name? And I thought I had bad people skills." Jack was laughing at his friend. Bunnymund just shrugged.

"You should tell her what you told me. It'll probably mean more coming from you."

The joyous expression turned more sombre and it was as different as the night was from the day on the teen's face. He looked Hermione right in the eyes and she realized just how blue they were.

"Hermione, you shouldn't have to change anything that you've done in the past. Your friends will soon realize that you did what you did out of love for them. I'm not saying it will be tomorrow or even the day after that, but good friends always have a way of coming back to you." Jack's expression soured as if he was remembering something particularly painful. "I've made my fair share of mistakes which I would have changed in an instant if I could have. The point is what doesn't kill you needs to find a new tact because next time you'll be ready."

"That's not how the saying goes, Frosty." Bunnymund said.

"It's my pep-talk and I'll say what I want!" Jack glared at Bunnymund and with a wave of his staff, a snow cloud formed over the pooka. Bunnymund glared at Jack and swiped the cloud with his paw only to have it reform.

Jack laughed and put his cold hand on Hermione's shoulder. "Stay strong kid. You've got a good brain in your head and an even better heart in your chest." He gave a grin that sparkled like freshly fallen snow and then he looked around the room as if entering it for the first time. "You've been busy, Kangaroo. There must be at least a dozen flowers around here." He brushed the daisy by the fireplace with his foot and it turned into ice.

"There's five. I'm surprised you don't know how to count – you've had three hundred years to learn." Bunny was still swiping at the cloud with his paw but to no avail. Eventually he chose to ignore it. "Hermione, I know you have a few more hours living in the past but we've got to go. Snowflake needs to help North, er, Santa deliver some more presents and I've got my own job monitoring stuff at the Pole while he's out and about."

Jack knelt down and picked the frozen daisy out of the floorboards. He bowed gracefully to the Gryffindor student. "Merry Christmas, Hermione. I hope things turn out alright with you and your friends. I'll stop by in a few weeks with a blizzard that will knock your cauldron over so keep an eye out for me." And with that the spirit was blown up the chimney by the wind and, as Hermione realized he couldn't have fit under normal circumstances, probably some help from a certain wizard's apprentice. The ice covering the fire melted and it ignited once more throwing shadows over the room and replacing the cold of the winter spirit with a wave of warmth.

"He really does know what he's talking about, you know." Bunnymund stood up and shook the snow off of his fur. The snow cloud had disappeared with Jack. Hermione looked at him and was once again overwhelmed at how big he was. "Your friends will begin to see things the way you saw them and then realize that you wanted the best for them." He placed his large paw on her shoulder, much like Jack did, but his touch was warm. He turned away and was about to open a tunnel when Hermione stopped him.

"Jack said that he was the Guardian of Fun. Well, what are the others Guardians of?" Bunny smiled.

"Nothing gets past you, sheila. Well, us Guardians all have purposes. Tooth collects teeth because they hold memories of childhood, North gives ankle-bitters wonder with his presents, Sandy gives good dreams at night and of course Frostbite spreads fun through snow."

"And you?"

"I am the Guardian of Hope." And with a grin, Bunnymund disappeared into his tunnel and only a flower was left in its place. It was a beautiful chrysanthemum. Hermione slouched in the armchair and felt the weight of what had just happened fall on her. The Easter Bunny was real. Santa did bring presents every Christmas and Jack Frost wasn't just a figure of speech.

As the sun began to rise she noticed the flowers still sprouting from the floorboards and the scorch mark on the wall from when she shot a spell at Bunnymund. She was almost didn't want to pick the flowers because they were the proof that what had happened just a few hours before was real.

Eventually she did pick them and put them in a vase that was sitting on a desk, filling it with water using her wand. Surprisingly, the daisy that Jack had frozen was still icy. She tucked it gently in her pocket and repaired the damaged wallpaper of the common room.

She ducked into the bathroom as she heard footsteps coming down the stairs. She stayed there until she heard the three of them leaving for lunch in the Great Hall.

With heavy feet she left the bathroom and walked up to her dorm. She figured she had around two hours until dinner was over and she could take a nap – it had been a long, exhausting night. Hermione had already cast a wake-up spell but before she could flop onto her bed she noticed a wicker basket lying on top of her covers. Inside was chocolate eggs of all sizes and a note.

She picked up the envelope and broke the seal. She noted it had a large "G" imprinted in the red wax. The letter read,

"Dear Hermione, I hope your Christmas is going well. Bunny told me what had happened and that you might need cheering up. So, me and other Guardians got together and filled basket with good things. My yetis made cookies which can be found in red bags. (Elves made cookies in green bags, but I recommend throwing those in fire so you do not get sick.) Tooth insisted on giving you toothbrush even though I told her your parents make sure you take good care of your teeth. The chocolates are from Bunny of course. Sandy will bring you good dreams tonight and Jack, well, he says your present will come in few weeks. (Probably snowstorm. I have lined basket with scarf for you.) Merry Christmas Hermione and keep believing!

"Sincerely, The Guardians.

"Ps. If you ever need someone to talk to, you are welcome to send owl letters to any of us. We will get back to you as soon as we are able."

Hermione felt a warm sensation fill her as she read the note. She found everything as North had said. She took out the green bags and after opening to look inside, set them aside to toss into the common room fire. They were roughly the consistency of rocks with everything from raisins to cereal in them. She ate some chocolates and safe cookies and slipped the scarf out of the basket. It was the same shade of blue as Jack's sweater with frost designs. She wrapped it around her neck and sighed. The next few days wouldn't be easy, but she would manage.

Instead of lying in her bed, Hermione sat at her desk and began writing a note for the Guardians to thank them for the basket. She couldn't fight the grin that parted her lips. It had been years since she had written a letter to Santa.


	2. Chapter 2

"That snow's really coming down."

Hermione jolted as Professor Vector, for the first time in Hermione's memory, broke off from her lecture. She was looking out the window with mild surprise on her face, which was akin to gawking on any other person.

Hermione rubbed her eyes quickly, trying to brush off her sleepiness to no avail. She wondered if Professor Vector, or any of her teachers, had noticed how lately she struggled to stay awake for their lectures.

She glanced at the window when everyone gasped at the spiralling frost glowing from the centre of the glass and she quickly put her hand over her mouth to stop from crying out.

Jack Frost was standing on the narrow window ledge like it wasn't just a few inches wide. The frost was swirling from where his breath touched the glass and he had the largest grin on his face. He waved at her and she gave a tentative wave back, hoping her classmates were too focussed on the window to notice her.

Jack shifted himself so his face was in one of the few visible spots left on the glass. "What time?" he mouthed. Hermione grabbed her quill and a scrap piece of parchment.

"6:30. Entrance Hall."

Jack nodded and looked downright sad at the prospect of waiting half an hour for her to be done class. Then his eyes lit up as if he had a brilliant idea. He blew into his palm and a glowing snowflake formed.

With a wave of his skinny hand, the snowflake slipped through the window and began gently floating towards Professor Vector. Hermione held her breath as it gracefully landed right on the witch's nose. The professor blinked a few times and then smiled, causing anyone who was not looking out the window to jerk back in their desks. Professor Vector did not smile. Ever. Unless she was announcing a pop-quiz or handing back a poorly done homework assignment.

"You know, you students have been working very hard all semester. I don't think tonight's homework is really necessary. We can cover everything we haven't done today on Monday. You are all free to go."

No one moved a muscle. This couldn't be happening. They must have all fallen asleep. But the slight smile on Professor Vector's face was something they couldn't have even imagined in their wildest fantasies. Hermione wasn't sure who started it, but a round of applause and cheering erupted in the classroom. Hermione glanced at the window and saw Jack laughing.

"Now, then?" Hermione mouthed at the Guardian.

Jack nodded and fell backwards off the window ledge. She quickly gathered her books into her already full bag and she left the classroom in a flurry.

Hermione rushed through to the entrance hall, slightly out of breath. Jack's blue sweater wasn't hard to see among the black Hogwarts robes. His staff was held over both his shoulders and he seemed captivated by the four hourglasses that tallied the amount of points each house had. She noticed him paying particular attention to Ravenclaw's, probably admiring the sapphires that almost matched his sweater.

He didn't show any signs of noticing her until she was right behind him.

"Thanks for that, Jack."

The frost-spirit glanced over his shoulder with a big smirk on his face. "I'm always happy to make kids happy. You know," He gestured to the door "I'm lucky that giant fellow came in when he did. The whole castle seems to be on lock-down from my storm."

Hermione didn't miss the note of pride in his voice. She was about to respond when her stomach growled, cutting her off.

"I guess that means you want supper now." Jack smiled and Hermione felt herself mirroring it. She didn't realize it until now, but she hadn't been smiling very much lately. Ever since Christmas, actually. Her smile faltered for a moment, but she started walking towards the Great Hall before Jack could question it. She could feel his cold presence following her into the Hall.

It was fairly full and Jack had hopped into the air to keep from being walked through. Hermione dodged her way through the crowd towards the two familiar faces out of habit before stopping and sitting at the first open spot she saw at the table.

"And who might you be?" Hermione looked up, startled to see Nearly Headless Nick, but he wasn't speaking to her.

She, like the other students around her, glanced to where the ghost was looking.

"Who's he talking -?"

"- gone mad?"

"- can't have lost his brain if he's still got his head."

Hermione, unlike the other Gryffindors, could see the startled look on Jack Frost's face. To his credit, he was taking a ghost being able to see him quite well. Then again, with the beings he called friends, it wasn't all that surprising.

He did seem to be tongue tied though.

"Uhh…Frack Jost – I mean – Jack Frost," he extended his hand to the ghost. They shook hands, the Gryffindor ghost's eyes widened in surprise when his hand did not pass through Jack's.

"Sir Nicholas de Mimsy-Porpington, at your service. I have not seen you here at Hogwarts before."

Jack glanced down at the students who were gaping at their house ghost who was apparently speaking with no one.

"Err, why don't we talk outside of the hall for a second, Nick. I'll explain everything." The ghost followed Jack out with confusion written plainly on his face. Everyone turned back to their food, whispering in not-so-quiet voices about theories of a ghost's mental stability and if it changed over time.

Hermione tried to ignore the ridiculous theories. A ghost stayed in the same state throughout their death. Poltergeists were their own breed of spectres and it was ridiculous to think an average ghost would simply become crazy. She huffed and began loading her plate with mashed potatoes and gravy.

She ate quickly, hoping to get out of the hall quickly. She could hear Ron's obnoxious laughter and watched Seamus waving his arms wildly, recounting a story that probably began, contained, or ended with an explosion. She felt a tug in her chest when Harry removed his glasses to wipe a tear of joy from his face.

She glanced down at her potatoes, and suddenly, she wasn't very hungry anymore.

"Can you grab me one of those buns?" Hermione nearly jumped out of her seat as Jack leaned over her shoulder. He had an almost innocent look on his face as he pointed to the basket of buns on the table. They had been toasted and covered in butter and Jack was looking at them like he had never seen anything like them before. "And maybe a piece of that toffee? And – Man in the Moon, are those peanut butter cookies?"

Hermione grabbed a new plate and began loading it up with whatever Jack pointed out. Sweets, pastries and whatever else the Guardian thought looked interesting, were heaped generously on the plate. Hermione left the table with some students staring at her back. "They will probably blame it on the stress of school or something," she thought mildly.

She passed the plate to Jack once they were out of the hall. She led him up the staircase and he immediately hopped onto the railing beside her. He was oddly quiet as he put one thing after another into his mouth, every so often giving a noise of surprise or delight.

"I can't believe you are so skinny if you eat like this all the time," Hermione said. Jack had almost eaten half of the plate's contents. He grinned around the muffin he was eating. Tooth had engraved manners into him since he became a Guardian, so he struggled to chew and swallow before answering her.

"I actually don't need to eat, but when the food is this good, it's hard not to. How do you guys fit into your robes if you have meals like this every day? I've only ever seen food this good when North makes a feast at Christmas for us Guardians! Well, the yetis do the baking, but still! I might just live at Hogwarts if-"

"Yetis?" Hermione cut him off because she wasn't sure she would be able to get in a word otherwise. The sugar must have been getting to the immortal because he was speaking faster and louder.

"Yeah! They make the toys. Most people think it's the elves, but that makes no sense because they barely reach a foot off the ground and they can't tell their bells from their feet. I guess I thought the same for a while so it isn't the weirdest thing to think, but –"

"Niveous solum."

"What?" Jack glanced at Hermione who had stopped walking and glanced down with wide eyes as the portrait on the wall swung open.

"It's the password for the door. Everyone's still eating supper, so it should be empty for a while yet."

Jack stepped off the railing and almost floated to the ground.

"You know dear," the Fat Lady said as Hermione led Jack through the passage, "You should probably take a break from all that studying. It seems to be getting to your head.

Hermione, like every other Gryffindor student, ignored her.

True to her prediction, the common room was empty except for the glowing hearth. Hermione waved her wand and reduced the intensity of the flames.

Jack nodded his thanks but he made no move to sit down. Hermione noticed that he was tapping his foot sending frost across the stone floors. He seemed like he was about to bounce off the walls. "You know, eating all of that food probably wasn't the best idea I ever had. I'm going to go fly a few laps around the school, race a few owls and give everything a new dusting of snow. Just leave a window unlatched for me and I'll get back in once I've spent most of my energy. Okay?" It took Hermione a few moments to understand his fast-paced speech.

"Alright. I'll probably be by that desk over in the corner. I have a lot of homework to do." Jack made a face and Hermione frowned. "Homework isn't that terrible! It's an important part of school!"

Jack rolled his eyes and smirked. "Hermione, I'm the Guardian of Fun, not of 'Sitting Inside and Writing.' Speaking of which," He opened a window, "I'll be back in ten." Hermione could hear his cheer of elation as the wind picked him up and she followed him with her eyes until he disappeared into the snowstorm.

Sighing at the empty common room, Hermione waved her wand to close the window, but left it unlatched. She also returned the fire to its original intensity before retrieving her homework from her dorm and settling at the desk in the common room


	3. Chapter 3

It was about half an hour later when a strong gust of wind opened the window of the Gryffindor common room which was much more occupied than it had been just a short while ago. The students who were sitting by the fire playing gobstones let out shrieks at the sudden breeze, and Hermione glanced up from her textbook just in time to see a certain spirit slip into the room. Not a second later, an older student barely looking up from where he read his book on a couch waved his wand to shut the window.

The Gryffindors settled down once more, thanking the senior student and thinking no more of the incident, nor noticing the added presence in the room. Jack Frost brushed off some snow from his hair, the flakes falling both on the floor and onto one student playing gobstones who strangely began lobbing the stones with renewed vigour. Looking around the room, he located Hermione, who sat at one of the solid oak desks. He smiled as he began walking towards her. "It's definitely best to stay inside right now."

As he approached, Hermione glanced behind Jack and eyed the wet footprints he left behind as the snow clinging to him melted in the warm common room. She decided that cleaning up the mess would only draw more attention to it, so she let the puddles be. Mindful of snow dripping off of him, Jack pushed his hair back before leaning over Hermione's desk. "What are you working on?"

"I'm taking notes on a supplementary reading for transfiguration." Hermione spoke in a low voice so anyone overhearing would just think she was just trying to make sense of a passage in her book. "We're going to work on the 'Lapifors' spell tomorrow," Jack took one look at the textbook and then laughed.

"Man, if I could do magic, I would turn all the flowers in Aster's Warren into rabbits. The look on his face would be priceless!" A smile lit up Hermione's face. From what she'd seen, Bunnymund was kind, but he was downright serious compared to the spirit of fun. Hundreds of rabbits hopping around his home would certainly be – Hermione's thoughts were interrupted by new images of a disused corner of the library. With a start she realized that the new equations that Vector had just covered suddenly made sense, and she knew that her Arithmancy homework and textbook would be found in a suit of armour on the third floor.

A could touch on Hermione's shoulder brought her surroundings back into focus. Her eyes became onto Jack's eyes which were wide with concern. Hermione only realized that Jack had spoken when he stopped, looking expectant.

"Uhh…sorry, Jack. Did you say something?"

"Are you okay? You spaced out for a bit, and now you seem a lot more tired than you were before. And trust me, that's saying a lot."

Hermione turned back to the desk and began fiddling with the chain around her neck. "I use my time-turner to go to all of my classes, but it's also the only way I can get all of my homework done."

Jack bit back his opinion about homework, and instead brushed the impressive mountain of books and parchment on Hermione's desk aside with a sweep of his staff and a gentle breeze from the wind. After clearing a space, he hopped onto the desk and sat down. "So, that just now was your past self essentially catching up with you? I mean, now you have a few more hours' worth of memories?" Hermione nodded. "That's a lot of stress for you. What if your other self disappears into thin air surrounded by people?"

Hermione grimaced. "There's been a few times when I've lost track of time and almost disappeared in front of my friends or as I'm leaving a room. It has taken a lot of practice, but I can finish my work with time to spare, and then I put my parchment and textbooks somewhere in the castle so that I can retrieve them later."

A gravelly meow interrupted their conversation as Crookshanks leapt onto the desk and began purring and rubbing himself against Jack's knee. Jack absentmindedly began scratching the cat's ears, trying to digest how a thirteen year-old who should be enjoying the fun things in life was time-travelling with casual ease.

"Wait," Hermione said, interrupting his thoughts. "How can Crookshanks see you?"

Jack glanced down at the mangy fur ball of a cat and shrugged.

"I have never really thought about it; animals just always see spirits like me. I guess it's because animals follow the assumption that if it seems like something is present, then it is. People especially adults tend to explain away things they don't understand. Just like in the Great Hall with Nick and just now with the window. When people get older they tend to follow the principle 'seeing is believing,' when it's often 'believing is seeing.'

"Crookshanks probably noticed you staring at an empty space and talking to it. He knows you're not crazy, so the next conclusion was that there was someone you were with. It's not so different from the belief of children, but it's more of the cherry on the cake than the driving force of us Guardians." Abruptly, Crookshanks stopped purring and let out a spitting hiss as he jumped out of Jack's lap. In the blink of an eye, the cat was across the room and pawing at something under a large wooden cabinet. Hermione had barely gotten up out of her chair to chase her cat when a different ginger blur came running from the direction of the dormitory room stair cases.

Ron Weasley stopped for just one moment before noticing the cabinet to his right and the intent that Crookshanks had on whatever was under it, and he seemed to have a good idea of what it was.

"Scabbers! Get away from him you mop with legs!" Ron pushed Crookshanks out of the way in order to reach under the cabinet and pull out what looked to be a trembling ball of fur. Ignoring Crookshank's meow of disapproval and the growing number of eyes in the common room that were watching the exchange, Ron stomped over to where Hermione still stood, her feet still glued to the floor beside the desk.

"Hermione, for the last bloody time, keep your cat away from Scabbers!"

"Shove off Ron, it was your fault that Scabbers got out of our room in the first place." With a start, Hermione realized that Harry was standing almost right beside her, and she could hear the exasperation in his voice. "You didn't close the door all of the way."

"Don't defend that menace, Harry! No other cat in this castle had even looked twice at Scabbers before she bought that hellion!"

Seamus popped his head out of the doorway to the stairwell. "Exploding Snap, boys. I'm not losing this round just because your rat likes to take off."

The fire that burned in Ron noticeably reduced from an inferno to a flame. "We'll be right up, mate." Sending Hermione one last smouldering glare, he disappeared up the staircase. Harry stayed where he was standing until Ron was out of listening distance. He turned to Hermione and he looked downright embarrassed.

"I'm sorry that he's blaming you for his rat running loose, Hermione. I know it's not really your fault, it's just that Ron's had Scabbers for Merlin knows how long, and he's grown quite attached to the ruddy thing."

Hermione let out a breath that she didn't know she was holding. "Thanks, Harry." And if Harry noticed the way Hermione's voice cracked, or how her eyes began to water as he gave her a quick comforting embrace, he didn't say anything.

"HARRY! GET YOUR SCARRED FACE UP HERE!" Seamus' shout echoed through the stairwell and Hermione couldn't help but crack a small smile. Harry just looked irritated as he rubbed his hand on his forehead. He made to walk towards the staircase, but Hermione grabbed his shoulder to stop him.

"The due date for Flitwick's essay on freezing spells is coming up. I could give yours a once-over if you'd like. I mean, I'm not saying that yours would be bad without my help, it's just that I thought-" Harry gave his friend an gentle smile.

"I'd like that. If you have time, that is. I know you're really busy. Maybe at lunch tomorrow?"

"Sounds good. Have fun playing Snap."

Once Harry disappeared, the common room buzzed with conversation. Hermione tried not to listen, but still she heard badly concealed whispers about the trio and what must have happened to make them so distant. Her eyes welled up as she thought about how a broom and a rat were tearing her apart from her friends.

After coming to a decision in her head, it was with silent efficiency that she gathered up all of her books and parchment into a pile in the corner of the desk, freeing the space if anyone needed it. She subtly gestured to Jack to follow her as she exited the common room through the portrait of the Fat Lady. She closed the portrait door behind them after Jack flew out, leaving behind them queries about where the sudden breeze had come from and if the window was actually shut all the way.


	4. Chapter 4

The empty corridors made Hogwarts seem darker than usual; even more so after leaving the brightly lit common room. But as Hermione led Jack through the castle, her mood improved drastically from Jack's light hearted commentary on the things they passed. Soon the thoughts of gossiping Gryffindors and Ron's anger lost their sharp edges and she once again felt relaxed, and for the first time in ages, she felt genuinely happy.

As it turned out, the portrait wizards and witches could not see Jack, but the painted animals could, and were obviously intrigued as to how this boy was flying. Some of the animals also captivated Jack, and his attention was caught by a giraffe. His fascination surprised Hermione until she realized that Jack had probably never been to Africa except to the mountains, or the rare snowfall elsewhere on the continent. The long necked animal must have seemed fantastical to Jack.

In the muted colours of the castle, it was easy to see Jack's blue sweater slip into a corridor, following the giraffe. Quickly calculating which stairs would take her to where Jack had wandered, Hermione followed.

Like all corridors, this one was lit by torches and, although there weren't many, portraits as well. But Jack was no longer chasing the giraffe – he was standing stock-still in the middle of the hallway.

"Jack, are you okay?" Hermione asked quietly, but her voice was carried easily by the stone walls. Her answer came not from Jack, but the blonde haired girl whose tilted head was now visible, looking around Jack at her.

"Hello Hermione," the girl said in a dream-like manner.

"Oh! Hello…Luna, right?" The strange girl nodded. Hermione remembered that she was a friend of Ginny. She had also seen Luna some nights while she was on her way back to the Gryffindor dorms after long nights in the library, wandering the halls late at night and talking to herself. "You can see Jack too?"

"Yes, I often see spirits that others can't see. My daddy says that I get it from my mother." Jack made a sound of realization.

"That's why you can see me! I've heard about people like you! North calls your gift 'clairvoyance.' You're born believing in what most people can't see."

Luna nodded. "So, how did you meet Hermione?" she turned to the Gryffindor. "I don't mean to offend you, but I wouldn't have thought you were still a believer in the Guardians." Jack's eyes widened when he realized that Luna was asking him for the story. Hermione's hand reached up to clutch the time turner beneath her robes and subtly shook her head at Jack. He nodded slightly showing he had gotten the message.

"You know, we met by chance. She ran into the Easter Bunny a while back and Aster – the Easter Bunny – told her that I was with him and Hermione started believing in me so she could see me too. I came to Hogwarts to visit because you guys were due for a good storm anyways." The half-lie slid easily out of Jack's mouth and it seemed to be enough for Luna.

"Will you be staying at Hogwarts long?" Jack paused to think about it. A gentle breeze, much stronger than the usual drafts caused the torches to flicker. Jack nodded as if answering something said.

"No, there's a few other places I need to hit before tomorrow, and the wind says I should get a move on." He smiled at Luna. "It was nice to meet you. It's been a pleasure, and I'll be sure to visit next time I come around."

"It was nice to meet you too, Jack. Watch out for feandras while you're flying. They can be a bother," Luna nodded sagely.

"Sure will. See you!" Jack turned back the way that they had come. Hermione gave an awkward wave to Luna. Despite seeing her around the castle, she had never really spoke with her before.

"Bye, Luna. Have a good night."

"You too. Sleep well." With that, Luna turned down another hallway and disappeared from sight.

"Jack," Hermione asked when she caught up to the spirit, "what is a feandra?"

"Haven't a clue."  
\---  
After Hermione watched Jack leave the castle through the window of an empty classroom, she retired to the common room, packing up all of her books and lugging them up to her dormitory. She played her evening with the winter spirit threw her head as she got dressed for bed, but for some reason, it wasn't the blue and white that she saw when her head hit the pillow, but a bright golden-yellow.

Puzzled, Hermione opened her eyes only to find herself not in the girl's dormitory at all, or even in her own bed. She was standing on an island made of golden sand. Despite the dark sky, the sand was warm under her feet. With a jolt she realized that a small man was standing in front of her. He was the same colour as the sand around him.

His face lit up when their eyes met and he waved. Around him, the sand moved, floating gently on an unseen breeze. He gestured to the sand and then pointed at himself.

Hermione couldn't figure out why of all the things to dream about, she was imagining this. Her imagination was out doing itself tonight. But then she remembered her discussion with Bunnymund that Christmas night and everything clicked into place.

"Sandy?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, this is all I have written of this story so far. I will continue this story, but anyone on fanfiction.net can tell you I'm a slow writer. Bear with me, and I hope that you continue to enjoy this story! :)


	5. Sandy

_After Hermione watched Jack leave the castle through the window of an empty classroom, she retired to the common room, packing up all of her books and lugging them up to her dormitory. She played her evening with the winter spirit threw her head as she got dressed for bed, but for some reason, it wasn’t the blue and white that she saw when her head hit the pillow, but a bright golden-yellow._

_Puzzled, Hermione opened her eyes only to find herself not in the girl’s dormitory at all, or even in her own bed. She was standing on an island made of golden sand. Despite the dark sky, the sand was warm under her feet. With a jolt she realized that a small man was standing in front of her. He was the same colour as the sand around him._

_His face lit up when their eyes met and he waved. Around him, the sand moved, floating gently on an unseen breeze. He gestured to the sand and then pointed at himself._

_Hermione couldn’t figure out why of all the things to dream about, she was imagining this. Her imagination was out doing itself tonight. But then she remembered her discussion with Bunnymund that Christmas night and everything clicked into place._

_“Sandy?”_

The Guardian of Dreams nodded with vigour, causing sand to shake loose and fall gently around him. Although she remembered being told about the Sandman in her childhood, Hermione had never given much thought to what he would look like. She had no images in her head to compare the small man to, but the Guardian’s appearance didn’t surprise her in the least. Sandy practically glowed yellow, and each grain of sand glittered like a tiny star. 

“Am I dreaming right now?” Hermione asked, and Sandy responded by nodding. Looking at Sandy expectantly, Hermione waited for him to elaborate, perhaps explaining why he had brought her here. Sandy’s eyes widened and sand quickly formed above him into the shape of lips and then shortly after an X. 

“You don’t speak?” Hermione guessed. A checkmark replaced the X over the Guardian’s head. Hermione thought of the many times she had played Pictionary with her parents, and she smiled fondly at the memories. She watched the sand form several Z’s and then an envelope which encased them. The golden letter then shot through the air and disappeared.

"You want me to help you send sleep?" Hermione guessed. Sandy made a face like she was close, and he began thinking of a different way to put his “words.” A thought bubble of sand appeared, and while Sandy mimed being asleep, one of the sand envelopes flew into his thought bubble and became an image of fairies and other magical creatures.

“Oh! You want my help sending dreams tonight!” Sandy stopped pretending to sleep, and gave her a thumbs up. “I’d love to! When do we start?”

Sandy’s eyes glinted mischievously, and with a wave of his hands, the sand beneath them began to lower and they sunk beneath the ground made of sand. Hermione yelped and fell to her knees at the unexpected motion. But the sand beneath her remained solid, despite its softness. The descent was swift but gentle, and Hermione soon came to realize that Sandy must reside in the sky because the darkness below her had soon given way to city lights.

Hermione gasped at the view. She had never seen any city look as beautiful as this. Thousands of tiny lights from lamps and car headlights glowed beneath her, getting closer with every second. She glanced over at Sandy who was smiling too. An image of a thumbs up and then a question mark appeared over his head.

“Yeah, this is amazing!” Sandy looked very pleased at that, likely glad that someone else was able to appreciate what he saw every night. With a flick of his hand, some sand detached itself from their cloud, and the streams of gold began to take the form of many animals. Hermione saw a horse and dolphin spring to life and then chase each other playfully before galloping and swimming into the city and disappearing into the houses below. Hundreds of other figures were pouring out of the streams of golden sand and flying through windows where they disappeared from sight.

Hermione and Sandy were close enough to the city that she was able to see the people walking on the sidewalks below, although there were not many, and she smiled. It was a truly humbling experience, and the golden dream-sand gave the view a more magical image. A tap on her shoulder brought her out of her wonder. 

It was Sandy, of course, and he formed a cloud of dream-sand in front of her. The little man pointed to her, the cloud, and formed a lightbulb over his head. Hermione puzzled over his gestures for a moment before asking “You want me to form a dream?” And Sandy nodded. Hermione drew a blank. What should she choose? Once formed, the dream-sand would be sent below to become a child’s dream. She didn’t want to make a mistake. 

It took about a minute before she finally reached out and the dream-sand became a fluffy cat that looked a lot like Crookshanks, but without the sour demeanor. She smiled as it stretched and then ran through a window, disappearing behind the glass. She looked at Sandy for his approval, and he nodded with a smile. Several more clouds appeared before her. She was much swifter at forming the dreams this time, and soon, her very own princesses, puppies, airplanes, and anything that came to her mind, were floating alongside Sandy’s expertly formed creations. Glancing down once more at the city, she was shocked to find that it was no longer the metropolis, but several shacks among sandy ground. She noticed that Sandy had changed his tact, and formed jungle animals and exotic birds to these huts. 

They must have spent a few hours creating dreams for children who were sleeping snug in their beds. Sandy guided the cloud through cities and villages, one after the other, until a familiar landscape appeared beneath them.

The spires that stretched into the sky above Hogwarts looked beautiful as they were still covered in snow from Jack’s storm, which had begun to ease off since the spirit’s departure. Once again, Sandy’s dream-sand creations became tailored to the children the dreams were intended for. Magical creatures that she had only read about began entering the castle’s windows, and some other objects like Quidditch brooms made their way into the mix as well. Hermione continued to shape the dream clouds that Sandy gave her, and she tried to make them the best that she could because she had a feeling that this adventure would soon be over. 

True to her prediction, Sandy steered their cloud towards one of the windows of the Gryffindor tower. With a yelp, Hermione realized that they weren’t slowing down, and she covered her face with her arms, preparing for the inevitable impact…which never came. 

Much like the dreams they had been sending all night, they phased through the window without so much as a crack in the glass. Hermione lowered her arms and looked around her. She was startled when she recognized the faces lying in the four post beds, but they weren’t the ones she was expecting to see.

“Sandy! Why are we in the boy’s dorm?!” She hissed at the Guardian. Sandy just smiled and pointed to one red-head. She wasn’t sure what Sandy wanted, but she noticed that instead of Sandy’s golden sand, a darker sand was swirling above Ron’s head in the shape of someone lying on a bed, not moving. It takes her a moment to realize that it must have been her when she was petrified last year. She could see the magnifying glass in her outstretched hand which she had used to avoid being killed by the Basilisk. 

Shuddering at the memory, she looks to Sandy for advice, but he just forms another dream cloud for Hermione to fill in. Hermione puts some thought into it before shaping the cloud into a memory of her, Harry, and Ron sitting under a tree on the grounds laughing about something or another, and relaxing after the debacle with the Philosopher’s Stone was over. This image made her smile, and Sandy guided it over Ron’s head where it consumed the black sand, and took its place in his dreams. Ron’s face becomes noticeably more relaxed as the happy memory replaced the sad one. 

Sandy tugged on Hermione’s sleeve and coaxes her onto the dream cloud again, and they float out the window. Hermione thinks about Ron’s nightmare and how he also thought that their time together in first year with Harry was a good memory. “Maybe our friendship isn’t as hopeless as I thought,” Hermione says out loud. “Was that why you took me along tonight?” She asks the Sandman. Sandy nods.

His eyes widen when Hermione fills his arms as she gives him a hug. “Thank you so much, Sandy. This has meant so much to me.” Sandy squeezes her tightly back, letting her know that he understands. 

The next thing Hermione knows, she is back in her bed, and some golden dream sand is floating through her window. She falls asleep before she can see what shape it takes, but in the morning, the memory of her and her friends sitting under the tree is fresh in her mind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Better late than never, I guess. I was perusing through the folders on my computer, and I found most of this chapter already written, but I had stopped because I wanted to portray Sandy in a way that did him justice. I hope that I succeeded!


	6. Easter

Easter rolled around sooner than Hermione had expected. Despite being nose deep in textbooks and rolls of parchment and having ink perpetually staining her hands, Hermione once again was on speaking terms with Ron and Harry. Mending their friendship had been something that Hermione would not have thought possible just months ago and it brought a smile to her face in spite of her looming examinations.

Though Hermione did spend almost all of her free time in the Gryffindor common room working on papers or studying, occasionally she was dragged away from her desk by Ron or Harry who forced her to take breaks. Easter was one of those occasions.

Ron and Harry had woken up on Easter to find Hermione already hunched over at a desk in the common room. Together, they convinced her that Easter, due to its holiday status, at least deserved a good breakfast. 

Unexpectedly, Hermione found herself enjoying the conversations which provided a welcome distraction from all of her looming deadlines, even though it often developed into analyses of Quidditch teams. 

While they ate their ham and eggs, a whole slew of letters flew in from the owlery. Students whose parents obviously didn’t want them to feel homesick on the holiday sent chocolates and letters to their children, and cheers erupted from many as they saw their Easter treats. Hermione herself received a letter from her parents with some sugar free sweets to eat and share. She was happy to be on good enough terms with Harry and Ron to offer them the candies without it being terribly awkward. 

Unexpectedly, a rainbow coloured bird fluttered in front of her. It looked like a humming bird and held a letter in one…hand? With the other it waved and then motioned her to be silent, nodding its head towards Ron and Harry. Hermione was about to ask why, but then she noticed the ornate G on the outside of the envelope. 

It was a letter from the Guardians of Childhood.

Hermione quickly tucked the envelope into the pocket of her jumper to open when she was back in the Gryffindor tower. The fairy nested in the crook of Hermione’s neck, making itself comfortable in her hair. She smiled at how the small warm weight felt so comfortable on her shoulder. 

It was with a small bit of relief that breakfast was over and Hermione dismissed herself when Ron and Harry decided to walk about the grounds together. But not before they made Hermione promise to meet them for lunch. 

Hermione almost ran up the stairs to the girl’s dorm to read the letter which was burning a hole in her pocket. She cracked open the wax seal and unfolded the letter. It was from North. 

_Dear Hermione,_

_Us Guardians would like to know if you are interested in coming to our annual Easter dinner. Bunny is needing rest after delivering eggs, but he is always up for a get together afterwards. I would like to be meeting you, especially since most of us Guardians have already met you, except for me and Tooth! The fairy delivering this letter is one of Tooth’s girls. If you are interested in coming, just let her fairy know and she will tell us your reply. If you are too busy with school or family, we will be missing you, but we also understand. If you would like to come, be ready at midnight tomorrow dressing warmly. Me and Jack will be there to pick you up from your common room window. (Jack assures me he can find right window.)_

_Hopefully we will be seeing you soon!_

_\- North_

Hermione lit up, excited at the notion of meeting Santa Claus and the Tooth Fairy, not to mention seeing the other Guardians again. The small fairy had also awoken and looked up at her with a questioning gaze, awaiting her answer. “Yes, I’d love to come!” 

-.-.-.-

So that was how Hermione found herself in the Gryffindor common room in her winter jacket awaiting the arrival of two legends of childhood. On a school night, no less.  
Hermione felt a little silly wearing the large jacket because it was spring, and not exactly the right weather for it. She checked her watch almost compulsively as the second hand ticked past midnight and into the later minutes after the hour. She began to get nervous, worrying that she had gotten the day wrong - that maybe the little fairy had not returned with her message. But a light rapping on the door startled her out of her musings. 

Hermione’s head jolted up to see the grinning face of Jack Frost standing on the window ledge. It reminded her of when Jack had dropped in on her Arithmetic class, cutting it short with some of his magic. Quickly, Hermione unlatched the window and swung it open.

"Hey there, Hermione - OOF." Hermione belatedly realized that perhaps she shouldn't have tackle-hugged someone who was standing on the ledge of a window, but Jack miraculously does not fall. Or maybe, she realized looking at the ground far below her as Jack floated in the air, it was not a miracle so much as magic. She was just lucky that Jack was able to support them both.

"I missed you, Jack!" 

"You'd be surprised how often I hear that. But it comes with the seasonal territory. It can't be winter all the time. Too much of a good thing and all that,” Jack gestures vaguely with the hand that isn’t wrapped around her. “And I’ve missed you too. But come on! Shut that window and I'll take you to the sleigh!" Hermione locked the window quickly with a wave of her wand. 

"Sleigh?" 

"Yeah, North said he would be coming in the letter didn't he? I don't think you could handle a flight all the way to the North Pole with just me and Wind. You might get a little more than me nipping at your nose." Jack teased. "Besides, there's blankets in the sleigh."

Jack flew her to the roof of the castle, and she was startled to see several large elk...no, reindeer, and a large sled which seems much more advanced than the sleighs typically associated with Santa Claus. The man sitting in the sled waved one of his humongous arms as the two approached.

"You must be Hermione! It is pleasure to finally meet you! As you must know, I am Nicholas St. North!" 

"Hello! It is great to meet you as well!" Hermione's hand was engulfed by the larger man's as they shook hands. 

"We ought to be getting going. Bunny was complaining about being hungry even before we left to pick you up. He is very grouchy when he wakes up after his post-Easter nap."  
"Well he did have a really big day yesterday." Hermione said. Jack was behind North waving frantically with wide eyes, motioning his fingers zipping across his lips and swiping his hands over his throat. Hermione raised an eyebrow but continued to speak. "I can only imagine how difficult it must be to hide all of those eggs and give out so much chocolate in such a short time." Jack's face disappeared in his hands.

North let out a booming laugh. “HAH! Easter is nothing compared to Christmas!” North looked like he was gearing up to lecture Hermione on the differences between the two holidays.

"Hold on, North,” Jack flies in front of the Guardian, blocking his view of Hermione, “how about you wait until you get to the pole to regale Hermione with your Christmas versus Easter speech." Jack tossed Hermione a blanket that he dug out of the back of the sleigh. "I'm sure that she'll hear all about it at some point tonight."  
North shrugged and gripped the reigns a little tighter. "Will you be riding with us, Jack?"

"We aren't far from the North Pole right now. I'll fly." Jack is pulled up by a strong gust of wind. "See you there!" Hermione watched as he quickly disappeared into the night sky with a ‘whoop.’ 

"Well we can't let him beat us there. Time to go!" The reigns cracked onto the backs of the reindeer and Hermione was jolted back in her seat as the sled started to move. It slid down the roof of the castle, surprisingly not damaging any of the old tiles, and after a moment of freefall, they became airborne. 

Hermione was on a roller coaster once at a fair near her home, and the feeling she gets from the sleigh reminds her of that. The first jolt upwards caused a gasp and she looked up at the sky in amazement. She had seen the stars this way when she had been visited by Sandy, but this was different. She no longer had the feeling of dreaming, and she felt the air become colder against her face. Suddenly she was very grateful for the blanket that Jack had given her, and the jacket she was wearing. She pulls her scarf up to cover her lower face.

North glanced over at Hermione with a smile, taking pride in the wonder that filled her eyes. He takes a little longer pulling out his snow globe than he usually would, letting Hermione take in the sight of the night sky. It was so easy to forget in his position how extraordinary the sight that he had become so used to over the centuries was. He glanced at the scene around him with renewed appreciation. 

"Alright, Hermione. I am using portal to get us to North Pole faster. It may be disorienting, but we will be fine." Hermione nodded and braced herself as North threw something into the air in front of them, and the reindeer gallop headlong into a swirling portal. She can't help but close her eyes as they go through it.

Instantly, once they were through the portal, Hermione found herself chilled to the bone. With a start, she opened her eyes. Despite Scotland’s mild spring, as far as she could see around her was snow. 

"Welcome to North Pole," North said with a smile as he steered the reindeer into a cave and parks the deer. Waiting in the cave are several large furry monsters which cause Hermione to double take. 

"Are those yeti's?" Hermione was reminded of back to the Gilderoy Lockhart collection that she read in second year. There had been one book called "Year with a Yeti," and these creatures seemed to fit that description well. 

"Da, they are indeed. And those little creatures running around underfeet are elves." Hermione noticed the strange little creatures, much smaller than she had imagined them to be as a child, waddled around, the little bells on their hats tinkling as they went. While the yetis unhitched the reindeer and pushed the sled into its parking spot, the elves didn't seem to be helping much. They were pointing at the yetis who just rolled their eyes and grunted, seemingly annoyed at the little elves. 

North nodded and urged her to follow him. Once they were out of earshot of the elves he said, "The elves, they try hard. They work just as hard as the yetis, but..."

"They don't actually do anything?" Hermione supplied.

"Da. They have big hearts, but sometimes they are not very...bright."

North led Hermione through the ice caverns until they reached a large wooden doorway which a yeti opened up for them with a deep bow and garbled words. 

North appeared to understand him, although Hermione can't for he responded, "Everyone is here? Excellent! We shall start dinner soon, then."

Hermione could hardly believe the sight that met her eyes when she entered the new room. There were toys flying everywhere, and it reminded her so much of her first time entering Hogwarts. There was so much going on, and she quickly felt overwhelmed. North's gentle hand on her back spurred her forward, farther into the room. 

"This way. We shall be eating in the dining hall." North led Hermione to another large door which he opened himself. Within, Hermione could see Bunnymund, Sandy, and a colourful feathered woman. Two children were also at the table which confused Hermione. One was a boy not much younger than her, and the other looked to be his sister. Her wild blonde hair framed a face much like the older boy's. 

A colourful blur entered Hermione's vision and suddenly she was looking right into the purple eyes of whom she believed was the Tooth Fairy. "Oh, your teeth are lovely! You must brush at least twice every day to get them white like that! North says that your parents are dentists! I am really glad that they are because I would hate to see such lovely teeth turn yellow! Could you smile real wide for me?" Hermione is practically left breathless trying to keep up with the Tooth Fairy's rambling. She blushes, having always been a little self-conscious of her teeth due to her front teeth being rather large, but gave the woman a grin anyways. Her feathers ruffled happily as Hermione did so. 

"Aww, come on, Tooth. Do you do this to everyone? I'm starting to feel like I'm not so special after all."

Hermione turned around to see that Jack had arrived and he brushed off some snow that was still clinging to his hair. 

"Jack!" The boy that was sitting at the table ran over to the winter spirit and hugged him. 

"Hey there, Jamie! Long-time no see!" Jack ruffled the young boy's hair. "Hi Sophie!" Jack waved at the girl at the table who returned it with a wave of her own, then she went back to talking to Bunnymund. Jack turned back to Jamie. "How have you been, kiddo?"

"Good. I could really use a snow day, though. I've got some projects coming up that really could use a day off to get them really good."

Jack laughed softly. "I can't really do that, buddy. It's the middle of April. I'm pretty sure the spirits of spring would have my hide." He set Jamie down.

"Damn right we would, you drongo." Bunnymund called from the table. "Now howsabout we all sit down and get eatin'. I am starving, here." Sandy pointed a finger at Bunny and shook it, scolding him. "What? I just woke up from a gigantic nap, and I could really use the food. It's a lot of work delivering eggs to every single continent!"

Jack leaned on his staff, throwing a look at Bunny. "Oh man, I can only imagine how hard it is to visit so many places in one day, eh Sandy?" The yellow man silently laughed. "I could use some food, though. Come on, Jamie. How about you tell me what your projects are on?" Jack led the younger boy to the table. Hermione was also guided to the table by Tooth and was sat between Bunnymund and Sandy. She appreciated the consideration as to which Guardians she actually knew.

"How are you doing, Sandy?" The Sandman gave her a happy thumbs up. He makes a few pictures which left her with the impression that he has been busy, as always, but has also enjoyed the changing of the seasons, and giving everyone good dreams of the summer months to come. He also showed an image of an Easter egg which quickly multiplied into a massive cloud of eggs which engulfed him and obscured the horrified face that he put on. Hermione laughed realizing how many children must have been dreaming of the Easter Bunny, and how that would take away from the usual creative liberties Sandy had with dreams. 

Sandy brushed a hand through the sand causing it to dissipate into the air. He then pointed to Hermione and formed a sand question mark. 

"I've been alright. Ron, Harry, and I have been getting along much better these past few months.” Sandy clapped his hands together and smiled widely. “The whole issue started because I thought that the new broomstick Harry had gotten for Christmas might have been cursed, but it has been thoroughly checked for jinxes and hexes now.” Hermione shrugs. “The professor doing the inspection didn’t find anything though and Harry has it back now. They seemed to realize that I had the right intentions when I reported it to a professor.” Sandy formed a question mark over a book that flipped open as if the wind was blowing its pages. "School?” She asked and Sandy nodded. “School has been alright too. I really got myself in a hole because all of the classes that I've signed up for has papers and projects due. I don't know how I'm going to get it all done, even with my time-turner.” Sandy waved so that Hermione looked at him instead of down at the table. He mouthed the words, ‘you can do it,’ which caused Hermione to grin. 

The door to the kitchen open with a bang and a crowd of yetis entered carrying many plates of food. Hermione noted that the selection would even rival the food served at the dining hall. Everyone at the table seemed to be waiting for something, so Hermione refrained from stacking her plate with food. Her assumption proved to be right when Bunnymund stood up and raised a glass of what appeared to be carrot juice. 

"I'd like to thank you all for coming to celebrate this time of year. It was only a few years ago when I used to spend the day after Easter just sitting in my warren, getting ready for next year's holiday." Bunnymund looks down at Jack who avoided catching his eyes. "But then someone came along, shook up our world, and brought us all together once more. It's a shame that it took us losing almost all our believers to realize it, but friendship is important, and we should use occasions like this to remember that. So, I'd like to thank you old hats for joining me once more, Jamie and Sophie for coming back to hang with us crazies, and also to Hermione who is joining us for the first time. Now, I am starving, so let's clink our glasses and dig in." Hermione raised her own glass of water and knocked it against everyone else's cups. 

Jamie, instead of filling his plate with food, immediately turned his attention to Hermione who was across from him. "So, Jack says that you're a witch? Like, with magic spells and everything?" Hermione froze. She couldn’t exactly tell a muggle about the wizarding world, could she?

"Umm...I'm not really sure how much I can say. The magical government doesn't want muggles," Jamie's eyebrows scrunch up, "I mean, non-magical people, to know anything about magic. It's against our laws."

Jamie seemed disappointed. "I understand. Could you maybe show me some magic though?" Hermione is saved from having to explain how using magic could also incriminate her by Jack knocking the boy’s shoulder gently. 

"Come on, Jamie, you've got magic happening all around you," he gestured to some toys which had made their way into the dining room and were moving all on their own. "You don't really need Hermione to do a demonstration, do you?"

"No," Jamie sighed. "But you're from Europe, right? You've got an accent."

Hermione smiles at the way Jamie bounced from subject to subject. "Yes, I am. I live in England, but I go to a private school in Scotland."

"Are there any magic schools in America?" Jamie's eyes lit up.

"Yes, there is but I don't know where. Some schools are very protective of their locations."

"Cool," Jamie breathed. Jack leaned over to enter the conversation. 

"Jamie is our resident paranormal and supernatural expert. He was into that stuff even before he met us all. He was actually my first believer."

"You mean that you didn't have any for almost three hundred years?" Hermione asks quietly. She remembered when Bunnymund had mentioned that first night she'd met them how long Jack had been around for. 

The jovial expression of Jack’s face remains there, but Hermione thought that it seemed more forced. "Yeah. It definitely wasn't the best three centuries. It was just a few years ago when I was told by these guys," he gestures to the Guardians around the table "that I was chosen by the Man in the Moon to be the next Guardian to help fight the Boogey-Man, Pitch Black. That was around this time a few years ago. This actually is a bit more than a feast to remember when we all got together, rather than an Easter feast, despite what Bunnymund might tell you." He looked across the table at the pooka who had been listening to their conversation. Bunnymund stuck out his tongue. Jack did as well. 

"Jack is correct,” North entered the conversation. “This is celebration of what it means to be Guardians. We choose to share it with children who have made difference in our lives."

"Jamie and Sophie were really important in the Battle of Burgess as we call it now," Tooth chirped. "Us Guardians were losing our powers because Pitch Black's nightmares were causing children to stop believing in us. But Jamie chose to still believe in us, even when everyone else had stopped, and with the help of Jack, he convinced his friends to believe again as well!" Jamie's face has gone a little red at Tooth's retelling of the story. Hermione's eyes fell to the table.

"So why am I here, then?" The Guardians made different sounds of confusion. "I didn't help with any battle, and I sure haven't made much of a difference in your lives. Though you have changed mine for the better, and I thank you all for that."

Bunnymund took a moment to think before answering. "Sheila, you only started believing in us again because you saw me when you went back in time - not now, Jamie." Bunnymund raises a paw towards the young boy who had opened his mouth to ask a question. With a huff, Jamie went back to eating his mashed potatoes. "But that's not the only reason that you kept believing, and it's certainly not the only reason that we kept visiting you." Jack and Sandy nodded their heads. "You've reminded us that we can help children, even when they are a little older than our usual bunch. Helping children like you rediscover the wonders of childhood is a great feeling, and sometimes, children grow up way too fast. That is a fact of life, but it's never too late to remember the good parts of childhood, even when growing up seems like the only option."

"Couldn't have put it better myself," North boomed, causing some of the cutlery to rattle. "I do request that we continue eating the food, though. Yetis will not be happy if they have to reheat food for us." Everyone agreed and started eating once more, breaking off into small talk. Hermione started chatting with Sophie who had many stories to tell about her elementary school. Hermione in turn, gave Sophie the abridged version of her adventures with Harry and Ron in their quest for the Philosopher's Stone, and Sophie seemed to light up when she talked about Crookshanks. The girl practically bounced off her seat and she began to share about Abby, her greyhound. Bunnymund leans over and whispered loudly to Hermione that he didn’t really care for Abby all that much. Sophie’s smile immediately turned to a pout.

"It's not Abby's fault that you are a big bunny."

"More like a big baby," Jack piped up, earning a bun being thrown at his head. He caught the bun deftly, and then ate it while leaning back on his chair in a gravity defying manner.  
“Jack.” North grabbed the attention of the winter spirit as he pointed to his right forearm which Hermione noticed has the word ‘naughty’ inked onto it. Jack sighed as all four legs of his chair return to the ground with a thump.

“I’m sorry for calling you a baby, Bunny.”

“And I’m sorry that I tossed my bun at you.” Bunny paused. “Because I am really craving a bun right now.” Jack glared and a gust of wind carried a bun across the table and right into Bunnymund’s face. 

“No fighting at dinner table, or none of you get dessert.” North didn’t exactly shout, but his voice carried to everyone at the table and caused Jack and Bunny to immediately settle. What might have turned into a war eventually just settled to occasional dirty looks. Hermione was slightly concerned. She turned to Sandy who shrugged. Sandy simply mouthed ‘brothers,” and then turned back to his food. 

Hermione turned back to the two Guardians and realized that there was no real hostility in the looks. There was mostly just teasing of each other, much like how Ron acted with his brothers.

She spent the rest of the meal listening to Jamie speaking about his fascination with magical creatures, and Hermione adding some information which he had left out or gotten wrong. Jack even joked that Hermione was slowly taking away his best-friend status with the young boy. 

Hermione also got to know Tooth better as she was actually able to keep up with the dental talk. Whether some techniques were better than others, and interesting dental traits – much of which was similar to her parents’ conversations at the dinner table. 

The entire meal went better than expected for Hermione considering she knew less than half of the people actually at the table, but all of the conversations had seemed natural. After a dessert which Hermione probably should have passed on considering how full she was, everyone groaned as they got up from the table, adjusting to all of the added weight of their dinners. 

“Well,” North sighed patting his belly, “I believe that it is time to get young ones to bed.” 

Jamie and Sophie protested loudly, wanting to stay for longer with their friends. Jack lightly tapped them both on the head with his staff. “I appreciate your enthusiasm for fun, guys, but Hermione’s in a different time zone and probably wants to get up before noon tomorrow.” He crouches down to whisper into Jamie’s ears. What he said caused Jamie to grin and Bunnymund to frown. 

“Oh no you don’t, it is spring! Jamie needs to learn about deadlines and preparing ahead of time instead of just relying on you to-“

“Come on! It’s not like you guys haven’t used your flower-powers to stomp on my season!”

“It’s different! Your snow kills what we’ve been trying to –“

“You know, some people really enjoy winter. It’s not all about you-“

“Stop interrupting me!”

“Stop arguing. It is bed time.” North repeats. “At least say goodbye before you both get into your arguments again.” North turns to Hermione. We will be dropping you off first before Jamie and Sophie because it is much later than in America.” Hermione nods.

In just ten minutes, Hermione was once again in the sleigh with Jack and the Bennetts, Jack having wanted to spend a bit more time with everyone, and perhaps to get away from Bunny’s nagging. When asked though, he said he would be able to help everyone get into their windows. 

One snow-globe portal later, she was back in the Scottish countryside and they were flying towards Hogwarts.

Jamie gasped. “Is that your school?! It’s a castle! A real life castle! That’s amazing!”

“You,” Hermione was almost lost for words, “You can see it?”

“Yeah, it’s right there!”

“It’s pretty. Are there any princesses there?” Sophie asked. 

“But –“ Hermione stopped herself from reciting how Hogwarts had magical wards to prevent muggles from seeing it. She supposed that they would find out on their eleventh birthdays if this meant anything. “No, no princesses. But there are some ghosts who look like princesses.”

-.-.-.-

North once again parked the sleigh on the roof of the castle, and after Hermione said goodbye to everyone, and received a bone-crushing hug from North, Jack lifted them both off of the roof and to the common-room window. After checking to ensure it was empty, Hermione used her wand to open the window, and stepped inside. 

“Thanks, Jack,” she smiled.

“No, thank you, Hermione,” Jack gave her a grin that she now could recognize as his trademark. “I’ll see you around. Remember to take breaks sometimes,” And with that, Jack flew away out of sight. 

Hermione went upstairs and settled into her bed, recognizing that she would likely be exhausted in the morning, but not finding it in herself to regret spending her evening with the Guardians. 

That night, she dreamt of Easter eggs, fairies, and elves playing in the snow. She sent a silent ‘thank you’ to Sandy and the man appeared just long enough to give her a mischievous wink before disappearing once more.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey dudes, I'd updated this Easter weekend on ff, but didn't get around to doing it here until now. I apologize to everyone for never updating this story. It is always in the back of my mind, but I'm never actively writing it. I actually found this in my drafts, and it was much more completed than I had thought, and better that I remembered. So, I decided to save it until around Easter. Thank you to everyone who follows this story :) I think that there will be one more chapter to wrap everything up, so keep an eye out for that.


	7. Finale

Hermione settled with Harry on a log in the Forbidden Forrest, waiting for their past selves to emerge from the Whomping Willow. Harry was still visibly reeling from not only learning that time travel was real, but actually experiencing it. He had his hands pressed together in front of his face. Hermione felt a pang of sadness for her friend who had shared his theory that James Potter had been the one to save him and Sirius Black from the dementors. 

Despite time travel recently proving to be real, it remained true that the dead stayed, well, dead. 

The forest was silent except for Buckbeak nipping at some passing bats, and leaves rustling from the wind. The moon passing in and out of the clouds had a mesmerizing effect on the forest around her as she stared at the Whomping Willow, waiting for everyone to emerge from it. With so much on the line, Hermione knew she shouldn’t relax, but the past day, (two days? One-and-a-half? Time travel could be disorienting,) was beginning to take its toll. 

Then she heard a voice behind her.

“I knew I felt someone messing with timelines again.”

Hermione froze up, and she saw Harry draw his wand as he turned around. 

“Bunny?” She asked, already knowing the answer.

“You know this thing?” Harry asked, eyes wide.

“Thing?” Bunny scoffed. “I’m a pooka, mate. Among other things, we are ancient time-travelers which is how I could sense that things were being changed here. Big things. And I should have expected that you,” he looked down at Hermione, “would be behind it.”

“Bunny visited me before when I tried to use my time-turner for something beyond just my studies,” Hermione explained. “He’s not a threat, so you can lower your wand, Harry.”  
“Harry Potter? So you’re the bloke that was causing Hermione so much trouble.”

Harry’s eyes widened. “I- I mean- uh-”

Harry was saved from answering by Buckbeak who had noticed the newcomer. The hippogriff began to make a low croaking sound deep in its throat and started to paw at the ground as if debating whether to charge. 

Bunnymund turned around to look at the hippogriff, but did not lower himself into a bow. If anything, he stood taller and looked down at the creature, causing its’ feathers to bristle. For a moment there was a stalemate that Hermione was afraid would turn into a fight, until Buckbeak lowered himself into a bow. Bunnymund returned it, and then turned back to Hermione. 

“Alright. What is it exactly that you two are doing?”

Hermione gave a brief explanation of what was happening, including the false murder charges against Sirius, Pettigrew’s betrayal and framed death. She told him their plan, of using the Hippogriff that they had just saved from execution to rescue an escaped convict and allowing both of them to flee into the night. Despite his nose twitching, Bunnnymund said nothing.

“You would be able to find Pettigrew, right?” Harry asked, desperation in his voice. “He’s going to get away, or he has gotten away and we can stop it this time around if we catch him.”

Bunnymund hesitated before answering carefully. “What you are doing is already dangerously close to changing the timelines. It is interfering, but each of the wavelengths are still within their natural boundaries, although barely. If I were to catch that man, everything would be off balance. I cannot.”

Harry turned to hide his disappointment, and Hermione pretended to not notice him wiping his face. 

But Bunnymund couldn’t ignore the hope that he had so quickly extinguished. He put his hand on Harry’s shoulder to get him to turn around, and Hermione averted her eyes to give her friend a bit of privacy, but she could still hear what Bunny was saying as she watched the Willow.

“Hey, Harry. I am real sorry that I can’t help you like you want me to. I’ve felt a pain similar to yours - I lost all of my kin to a war against someone who never did get justice properly served to him.” He took a breath before continuing. “Not gonna lie, it’s terrible. It hurts. But sometimes if you’re lucky, you can find a family that doesn’t replace the old one, but acts as a new one and makes you feel whole again.  
“I don’t know you very well, but I know that you have a good friend in Hermione and Ron. I don’t know Ron, but I know that Hermione was ready to change the past to make sure she wouldn’t lose your friendship. And I think that by the sounds of it, your godfather wants to have a role in your life, if you’ll let him.”

“Thank you.” Harry’s voice sounded muffled, and a glance over her shoulder showed Hermione that Harry had embraced Bunny who had his paws gently on Harry’s back.  
Hermione turned back to the Whomping Willow with a smile that faded as soon as she saw the movement of Lupin, Ron and Pettigrew emerging from the base of the tree. “We’re coming!” She said in a hushed voice. 

“Alright. I am going to leave now, and pretend that I didn’t even notice what you two were doing.” Bunnymund gave Harry a final pat on the shoulder. He tapped his foot and a hole appeared in the ground. “And Hermione?”

“Yes?”

“Return that time turner, would you?” Bunny smiled and disappeared into his tunnel, leaving a red lily in his wake, causing Harry to wipe at his cheek once more before focusing on the events unfolding by the Whomping Willow.

-.-.-

A golden light shone through the infirmary as morning broke over the castle. Hermione couldn’t speak for Harry and Ron, but she was itching to go outside and enjoy the beautiful weather with all of the other students she could see from the windows.

Just when she thought they would be free to go, Madam Pomfrey pulled her away from Ron and Harry. “Ms. Granger, I must ask. Have you been suffering from any negative side effects from your use of the time turner this semester? I’ve encountered cases where some people may begin to…see things after extended usage.”

“I-“ Hermione started and then dropped out. “What – what sorts of things?” 

Pomfrey leveled her eyes at Hermione. “Some people have spoken of having out of body experiences even when they are not currently using the time turner. Some have problems with disassociation, or encounters with imaginary creatures. Have you had anything of that sort?” 

Hermione considered telling her the truth. There might have been a time when she thought her tired brain was just making things up, but the encounter with Bunnymund yesterday solidified that the Guardians were not just products of her own imagination. 

“I haven’t noticed anything out of the ordinary, Madam Pomfrey.” The Matron gave her a look as if she could tell that the student is not being entirely truthful, but she relented.   
“Alright.” Pomfrey turned to the other third years. “Be on your way, you three. I would say I hope to not see any of you again, but I think I will simply settle with wishing you all a good summer.” 

Harry and Hermione’s conversations over the next few days are steered carefully away from what happened in the forest because they seemed to be in mutual agreement that Ron didn’t need to know more than necessary. But at King’s Cross Station, after Harry bid farewell to Ron, he leaned in close to Hermione. 

“I didn’t imagine Bunnymund, did I? You said you’d met him before.”

“That’s right. He is a…friend of mine.”

Harry nods. “Okay, that is good. I was worried that stress had been getting to me. If you see him again, could you thank him for me? For the advice?”  
“Of course. Have a great summer, Harry. I’ll see you soon!”

-.-.-

The summer began slowly, as it often does. And if Hermione’s parents noticed that she went to work with them more often than she ever had to do her homework in the staff lounge, they didn’t mention it. But Hermione had always made sure to have some fruit or sunflower seeds handy in case any of the passing fairies needed any snacks. Occasionally, one would deliver a letter to her from the Guardians, but this too soon became a normal occurrence. As did the evenings spent painting Easter eggs, building snowmen in colder parts of the world, or visiting the North Pole simply for the fun of it. 

Because having experienced time travel and meeting beings she thought were just fairy tales, not much registered as out of the ordinary for her lately.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN: Well, here we are my dudes; at the end of this saga that I started almost four years ago. This is all that I plan on writing for this story, but if anyone else is inspired to write something else in this universe, just send me a link, and I'd be delighted to read it and I'll put a link to it in this story.
> 
> I'd like to thank everyone who has been following from the beginning, and the new readers who have also given me encouragement to finish this story. You guys are all amazing :D


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